Questions
| English | Part of speech | IPA | Lugso | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INT | VB suffix | ʌχ | oh | interrogative mood - is …? did X …? |
| Q | suffix | ʃu | 5u | turns a word into a question |
| dream | VB | zʌð | zod | also “wish to” |
| tremble | VB | ʌɸz | opz | |
| certain | ADJ | zvʌjɣ | zvoyg | |
| voice | VB | juð | yud | |
| dry | ADJ | xɻʌθz | xrotz | |
| heretic | N | isv | isv | |
| hidden | ADJ | xuθ | xut | |
| consummate | VB | xβiθɸ | xbitp | |
| DET.PROX | PART | iviχ | ivih | proximal determinant (this) |
| DET.DIST | PART | ivəɮ | ivol | distal determinant (that) |
| seek | VB | ɻiɮs | rils | |
| come | VB | zfʌj | zfoy | |
| mercurial | ADJ compound* | fiχθn | fihtn | change-ADJ.DER |
| child | N | jʌɮs | yols |
Simple questions
-5u: questions about things [noun suffix or standalone]
-5u is a noun suffix, and is used either in place of a word to form a question, or at the end of a word to make that word the subject of the question.
huf hupz5u xtulhu
consume human-Q Cthulhu
Which human is Cthulhu eating?
huf 5u xtulhu
consume Q Cthulhu
What is Cthulhu eating?
5u xtulhu
Q Cthulhu
What is Cthulhu?
Note here again the implicit copula.
huf hupz xtulhu5u
consume human Cthulhu-Q
Is Cthulhu eating a human (or is something else eating it)?
-oh: questions about actions and states [verb suffix - interrogative mood]
-oh is a verb suffix, and is used for questioning whether the action is occurring.
This is different from -5u (which operates solely on nouns) in order to disambiguate between “verb Q noun?” and “verb-Q noun?” When INT and Q were the same - that is to say, when all cultists had was Q, and the question of whether you were eating (eat-Q you?) was identical to the question of what you were eating (eat Q you?), cultists never got anything done. So, in practice, INT emerged.
fhtogi’oh xtulhu
sleep-INT Cthulhu
Does Cthulhu sleep/die?
zodoh xtulhu
dream-INT Cthulhu
Does Cthulhu dream?
hufoh hupz xtulhu
consume-INT human Cthulhu
Is Cthulhu eating a human (or doing something else to it)?
Auxiliary verbs
oh attaches to the auxiliary when forming a question.
huf-yog vgovoh sru3ir ivol lugso do
consume--knowledge can-INT referent-ACC DET.DIST blood-GEN 2SG
Can you learn what that blood portends?
“Wh-“ words, using noun case + 5u
“where”: Locative + Q
opz 5ix5u yud’d zvoygzi
tremble LOC-Q voice-PL certain-NEG
Where do the uncertain voices tremble?
“how”: Instrumental + Q
xrotzi if’fo5u isvd xut do
dessicate INS-Q heretic-PL hidden 2SG
How did you dehydrate the hidden heretics?
“whence/from where”: Ablative + Q
zfoy ug5u tgus-tlu ivih
come ABL-Q sacrifice--beast DET.PROX
Where did this unwilling xsacrifice come from?
“why”: Prolative + Q
fihtn pzuv35u yols
mercurial PROL-Q child
Why is the child mercurial?
“when”: Temporal + Q
fiht zxi5u yols
change TEMP-Q child
When does the child change?
“who”: Reflexive + 5u (literally “whatself”)
pi5n tu5o’ir fif5u
crush priest-ACC REFL-Q
Who (which ‘self’) crushed the priest?
Complex questions
Complex questions can be formed by combining the various elements presented above. Here are a few examples:
Combining verb and noun questions
hufoh 5u xtulhu
consume-INT Q Cthulhu
Is Cthulhu eating something (and if so, what is it)?
Combining “wh-“ words with verb questions
zfoyoh 5ix5u
come-INT LOC-Q
Is this coming from somewhere (and if so, where)?
Combining multiple “wh-“ words
zfoy 5ix5u zxi5u
come LOC-Q TEMP-Q
Where and when did it come from?
Combining auxiliary verbs and “wh-“ words
huf-yog vgovoh sru3ir if’fo5u do
consume--knowledge can-INT referent-ACC INS-Q 2SG
How can you learn what the portent refers to?